Home & Living — B1 Essential Words

rent /rent/ noun and verb B1 Home

Meaning: Money that you pay regularly to live in a house or apartment that belongs to someone else. As a verb, it means to pay to use a place or a thing for a time.

Example: Their rent in Austin is $1,200 a month.

Another example: We rented a small apartment near the college.

Collocations: pay rent · rent an apartment · rent a car

Synonyms: lease

Antonyms: own

Word family: rent (n) · rent (v) · rental (n/adj) · renter (n)

⚠ Common mistake: You ’rent’ a place to live in, and the owner ’rents it out’. Don’t say ’I rent my house to a landlord’ — the landlord rents the house to YOU.

🗣 In spoken American English: Apartments are listed as ’For Rent’. The first month usually needs the first month’s rent plus a deposit.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

neighbor /ˈneɪ.bɚ/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A person who lives near you, in the next house or apartment.

Example: Our neighbors are friendly — they helped us move in.

Another example: Mrs. Miller is our neighbor; she lives next door.

Collocations: next-door neighbor · friendly neighbors · neighborhood watch

Synonyms: person next door

Word family: neighbor (n) · neighborhood (n) · neighborly (adj)

⚠ Common mistake: ’Neighbor’ is the person; ’neighborhood’ is the whole area. Don’t say ’my neighborhood is kind’ when you mean the person next door.

🗣 In spoken American English: Americans wave and say ’Hi, neighbor!’ A good area is often described as a ’nice neighborhood’.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

furniture /ˈfɝː.nɪ.tʃɚ/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: The large objects in a room that you use every day, like tables, chairs, beds, and sofas.

Example: The apartment came with no furniture, so we bought a bed and a table.

Another example: Old wooden furniture can be very beautiful.

Collocations: a piece of furniture · furniture store · modern furniture

Synonyms: furnishings

Word family: furniture (n) · furnish (v) · furnished (adj)

⚠ Common mistake: ’Furniture’ is uncountable: say ’some furniture’ or ’a piece of furniture’, not ’a furniture’ or ’furnitures’.

🗣 In spoken American English: A ’furnished’ apartment already has furniture; an ’unfurnished’ one is empty. Students buy cheap furniture at garage sales.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

stairs /sterz/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A set of steps that you walk on to go up or down between floors in a building.

Example: My apartment is on the third floor, so I climb the stairs every day.

Another example: Be careful — the stairs are wet.

Collocations: go up the stairs · go down the stairs · at the top of the stairs

Synonyms: steps, staircase

Word family: stairs (n) · staircase (n) · upstairs (adv) · downstairs (adv)

⚠ Common mistake: ’Stairs’ is always plural: ’The stairs are…’, not ’The stairs is…’. One single step is a ’step’ or a ’stair’.

🗣 In spoken American English: ’Upstairs’ means the floor above; ’downstairs’ is the floor below. People say ’Take the stairs’ instead of using the elevator.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

balcony /ˈbæl.kə.ni/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A small platform outside an upper floor of a building, with a wall or railing around it, where you can stand or sit.

Example: Our hotel room in San Diego had a balcony with a view of the ocean.

Another example: Grandma Rose grows tomatoes on her balcony.

Collocations: on the balcony · a balcony with a view · balcony door

Synonyms: deck, terrace

Word family: balcony (n)

⚠ Common mistake: A ’balcony’ is high up on a building. A flat area on the ground behind a house is a ’patio’ or a ’deck’, not a balcony.

🗣 In spoken American English: Apartment ads say ’with balcony’ as a selling point. In theaters, the ’balcony’ is also the high seating area.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

garage /ɡəˈrɑːʒ/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A building or room next to a house where you keep your car. It can also be a place where cars are repaired.

Example: He parks his truck in the garage every night.

Another example: The car would not start, so we took it to a garage in Houston.

Collocations: in the garage · garage door · garage sale

Synonyms: repair shop (for repairs)

Word family: garage (n)

⚠ Common mistake: A ’garage’ is for parking at home, and it is also a repair shop. The place where you leave a car in a city center is a ’parking garage’ or a ’parking lot’.

🗣 In spoken American English: A ’garage sale’ is when a family sells old things from their garage and yard — very common on American weekends.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

curtain /ˈkɝː.tən/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A piece of cloth that hangs over a window to block light or to stop people from seeing inside.

Example: Please close the curtains — the sun is in my eyes.

Another example: She bought blue curtains for the living room.

Collocations: close the curtains · open the curtains · a pair of curtains

Synonyms: drapes

Word family: curtain (n) · curtained (adj)

⚠ Common mistake: ’Curtains’ cover windows inside the house. Don’t confuse them with a ’carpet’, which covers the floor.

🗣 In spoken American English: Heavy curtains are also called ’drapes’ in American stores. In a theater, the ’curtain’ is the big cloth in front of the stage.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

carpet /ˈkɑːr.pət/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A thick, soft material that covers the floor of a room, or a large piece of it.

Example: The children like to play on the soft carpet.

Another example: We need to clean the carpet in the living room.

Collocations: on the carpet · carpet cleaner · roll out the red carpet

Synonyms: rug (smaller piece)

Word family: carpet (n) · carpeted (adj)

⚠ Common mistake: A ’carpet’ usually covers the whole floor; a ’rug’ is smaller and covers only part of it. Don’t use ’carpet’ for the cloth on a window — that is a ’curtain’.

🗣 In spoken American English: ’Red carpet’ events are fancy events for famous people. A wall-to-wall carpet is common in American bedrooms.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

heating /ˈhiː.tɪŋ/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: The system that makes a building warm, or the heat that it produces.

Example: In Denver, the heating is on from October to April.

Another example: Our heating stopped working on the coldest night of the year.

Collocations: central heating · turn the heating on · heating bill

Synonyms: heat, heating system

Antonyms: air conditioning, cooling

Word family: heating (n) · heat (n/v) · heater (n)

⚠ Common mistake: ’Heating’ is the system; a ’heater’ is the machine. Say ’Turn on the heating’ for the house system, not ’open the heating’.

🗣 In spoken American English: In winter, Americans ask ’Is the heat on?’ Landlords in many cities must provide heat by law.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing

landlord /ˈlænd.lɔːrd/ noun B1 Home

Meaning: A person or company that owns a house or apartment and rents it to other people.

Example: Our landlord fixed the broken window in two days.

Another example: If the heating breaks, call the landlord.

Collocations: call the landlord · a good landlord · landlord and tenant

Synonyms: property owner, lessor (formal)

Antonyms: tenant, renter

Word family: landlord (n) · landlady (n — female, older word) · tenant (n)

⚠ Common mistake: The ’landlord’ owns the place; the ’tenant’ rents it. Don’t call yourself the landlord of the apartment you rent — you are the tenant.

🗣 In spoken American English: Renters usually contact the landlord about repairs. A message to the landlord should be polite and clear.

Register: neutral — fine in speech and writing